Service providing system, information processing device, method, and program

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a service providing system, an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a program. An information processing apparatus (base unit)  2  receives user information detected by sensors provided in an information processing apparatus (remote unit)  3  from the information processing apparatus (remote unit)  3 , acquires article information of articles sold in a shop from a shop-information portal site server  5 , selects an article to be recommended to a user based on the acquired user information and article information, and transmits the article information of the selected article to the information processing apparatus (remote unit)  3 . The information processing apparatus (remote unit)  3  displays the received article information in, for example, a display to recommend the article. The present invention can be applied to an electronic apparatus connected to a network.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.10/526,375, filed Oct. 14, 2005, the contents of which are incorporatedherein by reference, and which is the National Stage of PCT/JP03/11534,filed Sep. 10, 2003, and claims priority to Japanese Patent Application2002-264772, filed Sep. 10, 2002.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to service providing systems, informationprocessing apparatuses, information processing methods, and programs.More particularly, the present invention relates a service providingsystem, an information processing apparatus, an information processingmethod, and a program, which are capable of reducing leakage of theprivate information of a user.

BACKGROUND ART

A system that provides useful information to a user transmits articleinformation and sale information of a shop by wireless to a distributionarea within a predetermined distance from the information terminal ofthe shop and, when the user who carries a mobile terminal enters thedistribution area, automatically receives the article information andthe sale information to store the received information. The system hasseparate means for searching the information by a consumer (for example,refer to Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No.2000-276532 (pages 5 to 7)). A system registers an article desired by auser in advance and raises an alarm when a shop has the article desiredby the user (also refer to Japanese Unexamined Patent ApplicationPublication No. 2000-276532 (pages 5 to 7)).

A system presents advertisement information to be presented to an driverof a mobile body in a form of at least one of an image and a sound,depending on the situation of the mobile body, in order to allow thedriver of the mobile body, who wants to use the advertisementinformation, to watch and listen to the advertisement information in amore secure situation. The system uses a global positioning system (GPS)to determine the position of the mobile body and presents theadvertisement information of a shop when the mobile body reaches an areawithin a distance of, for example, 2 km from the shop (for example,refer to Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No.2000-292182 (pages 4 to 5)).

In a system having elements and nodes, which constitute the system,connected thereto over a network, a cyber-entity (hereinafter referredto as a CE), which is a program executed by the nodes, acquiresinformation input by a user; history information of the user; real worldinformation (information concerning the user, such as the position ofthe user or the biological information, the concentration of nitrogengas in the air, humidity, opening/closing of a door, the water level ofa pot, turning on/off of an electric lamp, wind speed, water depth,electric conductivity, luminance, odor, a traffic situation, thefreshness of food, room temperature, and/or precipitation) acquired byusing a sensor; attribute information of the CE; and so on(environmental sensing), and acquires information concerning other CEs(B) by the environmental sensing. The CE generates and recordsrelationship information of the CEs (B) based on the acquiredinformation concerning the CEs (B), and selects a target CE to beinteracted with based on the relationship information to provide aservice while interacting with the target CE (for example, refer toJapanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2002-175405(pages 9 to 11)).

A system stores the characteristics of a shop where a base terminalcomputer is installed in the base terminal computer as base terminaldevice profile. In this system, when the mobile terminal computer of auser is connected to the base terminal computer, the user profile istransmitted to the terminal device computer and is updated so as toreflect the base terminal device profile of the base terminal computerin order to reflect the preference of the user in the user profile andto be accommodated to the user's interest that dynamically varies (forexample, refer to Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No.2002-117066 (pages 12 to 13)).

However, with known systems, there is a problem in that the privateinformation of a user must be provided to the outside when theinformation suited to the preference of the user is recommended to theuser.

For example, in the system disclosed in the Japanese Unexamined PatentApplication Publication No. 2002-117066 (pages 12 to 13), the userprofile must be transmitted from the mobile terminal computer to thebase terminal computer.

Accordingly, the transmission can result in leakage of the privateinformation of the user.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

In order to resolve the above problem, it is an object of the presentinvention is to reduce leakage of the private information of a user.

A service providing system of the present invention includes a firstinformation processing apparatus that acquires user information, whichis the information concerning a user, a second information processingapparatus that accumulates information and provides the accumulatedinformation on a network, and a third information processing apparatuswhich the user carries along with the first information processingapparatus. The first information processing apparatus includes acquiringmeans for acquiring the user information; first communication means fortransmitting the user information acquired by the acquiring means to thethird information processing apparatus and receiving presentationinformation to be presented to the user from the third informationprocessing apparatus; and presenting means for presenting thepresentation information received by the first communication means. Thesecond information processing apparatus includes second communicationmeans for transmitting the accumulated information to the thirdinformation processing apparatus. The third information processingapparatus includes third communication means for receiving the userinformation from the first information processing apparatus; fourthcommunication means for receiving the accumulated information from thesecond information processing apparatus; and selecting means forselecting the presentation information from among the accumulatedinformation based on the user information. The third communication meanstransmits the presentation information selected by the selecting meansto the first information processing apparatus.

An information processing apparatus according to a first aspect of thepresent invention includes acquiring means for acquiring userinformation, which is the information concerning a user; communicationmeans for transmitting the user information acquired by the acquiringmeans to another information processing apparatus and receivingpresentation information to be presented to the user from the otherinformation processing apparatus; and presenting means for presentingthe presentation information received by the communication means. Theuser carries the information processing apparatus along with the otherinformation processing apparatus.

The acquiring means may include a GPS antenna. The user information mayinclude information concerning the longitude and latitude of a locationof the user.

The acquiring means may include a microphone. The user information mayinclude audio information spoken by the user.

The presentation information may include article information of anarticle expected to be desired by the user.

The presenting means may include displaying means for displaying thepresentation information.

The presenting means may include outputting means for outputting a soundassociated with the presentation information.

The communication means may perform communication with the otherinformation processing apparatus using a Bluetooth technology.

The information processing apparatus may further include attractingmeans for attracting the user's attention to the information processingapparatus when the presenting means presents the presentationinformation.

An information processing method according to the first aspect of thepresent invention includes the steps of acquiring user information,which is the information concerning a user; transmitting the userinformation acquired in the acquiring step to another informationprocessing apparatus; receiving presentation information to be presentedto the user from the other information processing apparatus; andpresenting the presentation information received in the receiving step.

A program according to the first aspect of the present invention causesa computer to perform the steps of acquiring user information, which isthe information transmitted to an information processing apparatus andwhich is the information concerning a user; and presenting presentationinformation to be presented to the user when the presentationinformation is received from the information processing apparatus.

An information processing apparatus according to a second aspect of thepresent invention includes communication means for receiving informationconcerning the location of a user from another information processingapparatus that selects presentation information to be presented to theuser from among accumulated information that is held by the informationprocessing apparatus and that includes article information of articlessold in a shop; and acquiring means for acquiring the articleinformation of the articles sold in the shop where the user is locatedbased on the information concerning the location of the user received bythe communication means. The communication means transmits the articleinformation acquired by the acquiring means to the other informationprocessing apparatus.

The information processing apparatus may further include generatingmeans for generating routing information for guiding the user to aspecified location. The communication means may further transmit therouting information generated by the generating means to the otherinformation processing apparatus.

An information processing method according to the second aspect of thepresent invention includes the steps of receiving information concerninga location of a user from another information processing apparatus thatselects presentation information to be presented to the user from amongaccumulated information that is held by an information processingapparatus and that includes article information of articles sold in ashop; acquiring the article information of the articles sold in the shopwhere the user is located based on the information concerning thelocation of the user, received in the receiving step; and transmittingthe article information acquired in the acquiring step to the otherinformation processing apparatus.

A program according to the second aspect of the present invention causesa computer to perform an acquiring step of acquiring article informationof articles sold in a shop where a user is located as information to betransmitted to another information processing apparatus that selectspresentation information to be presented to the user from amongaccumulated information that is held in an information processingapparatus and that includes the article information of the articles soldin the shop, based on information concerning the location of the user,when the information concerning the location of the user is receivedfrom the other information processing apparatus.

An information processing apparatus according to a third aspect of thepresent invention includes first communication means for receiving userinformation, which is the information concerning a user, from anotherfirst information processing apparatus; second communication means forreceiving accumulated information accumulated in another secondinformation processing apparatus from the other second informationprocessing apparatus; and selecting means for selecting presentationinformation to be presented to the user from among the accumulatedinformation based on the user information. The first communication meanstransmits the presentation information selected by the selecting meansto the first information processing apparatus.

The user information may include information concerning the longitudeand latitude of a location of the user.

The user information may include audio information spoken by the user,acquired by the other first information processing apparatus. Theinformation processing apparatus may further include analyzing means foranalyzing the audio information.

The selecting means may select the presentation information to bepresented to the user from among the accumulated information based onthe analysis result in the analyzing means.

The accumulated information may include article information of articlessold in a shop. The selecting means may select an article expected to bedesired by the user from among the articles sold in the shop based onthe article information of the articles sold in the shop. The articleinformation of the selected article may be the presentation information.

The information processing apparatus may further include determiningmeans for determining whether the user is present in the shop. Theselecting means may select the article expected to be desired by theuser from among the articles sold in the shop where the user is present,determined by the determining means.

The first communication means may perform communication with the otherfirst information processing apparatus using a Bluetooth technology.

The information processing apparatus may further include storage meansfor storing the user information received by the first communicationmeans and the accumulated information received by the secondcommunication means.

An information processing method according to the third aspect of thepresent invention includes a first receiving step of receiving userinformation, which is the information concerning a user, from anotherfirst information processing apparatus; a second receiving step ofreceiving accumulated information accumulated in another secondinformation processing apparatus from the other second informationprocessing apparatus; a selecting step of selecting presentationinformation to be presented to the user from among the accumulatedinformation based on the user information; and a transmitting step oftransmitting the presentation information selected in the selecting stepto the first information processing apparatus.

A program according to the third aspect of the present invention causesa computer to perform a selecting step of selecting presentationinformation to be presented to a user by a first information processingapparatus from among accumulated information that is received fromanother second information processing apparatus and that is accumulatedin the other second information processing apparatus, based on userinformation which is received from the other first informationprocessing apparatus and which is the information concerning the user.

In the service providing system of the present invention, the firstinformation processing apparatus acquires user information, which is theinformation concerning a user, and transmits the acquired userinformation to the third information processing apparatus. The thirdinformation processing apparatus receives presentation information to bepresented to the user and presents the received presentationinformation. The second information processing apparatus transmitsaccumulated information held therein to the third information processingapparatus. The third information processing apparatus selects thepresentation information from among the accumulated information receivedfrom the second information processing apparatus based on the userinformation received from the first information processing apparatus andtransmits the selected presentation information to the first informationprocessing apparatus.

In the first information processing apparatus, information processingmethod, and program of the present invention, the user information,which is the information concerning the user, is acquired and istransmitted to another information processing apparatus. Thepresentation information received from the other information processingapparatus is presented to the user. The user carries the firstinformation processing apparatus according to the first aspect of thepresent invention along with the other information processing apparatus.

In the second information processing apparatus, information processingmethod, and program of the present invention, the information concerningthe location of the user is received from another information processingapparatus that selects the presentation information to be presented tothe user from among the accumulated information that is held in theinformation processing apparatus and that includes article informationof articles sold in a shop, and the article information of the articlessold in the shop where the user is located is acquired based on thereceived information concerning the location of the user. The acquiredarticle information is transmitted to the other information processingapparatus.

In the third information processing apparatus, information processingmethod, and program of the present invention, the presentationinformation to be presented to the user by the first informationprocessing apparatus is selected from among the accumulated informationwhich is received from the other second information processing apparatusand which is accumulated in the other second information processingapparatus, based on the user information which is received from theother first information processing apparatus and which is theinformation concerning the user.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates the structure of a service providing system of thepresent invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example in which a remote unit is mounted to abase unit in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example in which the remote unit is removed fromthe base unit in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 illustrates examples of the shape and size of the remote unit inFIG. 1.

FIG. 5 illustrates examples of the appearance and the internal structureof the remote unit in FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example of the external structure of the remoteunit in FIG. 1.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing an example of the electrical structureinside the remote unit in FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 illustrates examples of the shape and size of the base unit inFIG. 1.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing an example of the electrical structureinside the base unit in FIG. 1.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing the structure of a shop-informationportal site server in FIG. 1.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing the structure of a stock managementserver in FIG. 1.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing the structure of a positionalinformation service server in FIG. 1.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating the overview of a process ofproviding a service in the service providing system of the presentinvention.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating a process of providing userinformation in the remote unit and a process of acquiring the userinformation in the base unit.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating a process of providing the userinformation in the remote unit and a process of acquiring the userinformation in the base unit, which are different from the processesshown in FIG. 14.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustrating a process of acquiring databaseinformation in the base unit and a process of providing the databaseinformation in the shop-information portal site server.

FIG. 17 a flowchart illustrating a process of acquiring databaseinformation in the base unit and a process of providing the databaseinformation in the shop-information portal site server, which aredifferent from the processes shown in FIG. 16.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart illustrating a process of transmitting GPSinformation in the remote unit.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart illustrating a process of recommending an articlebased on positional information in the base unit.

FIG. 20 is a flowchart illustrating the process of recommending thearticle based on the positional information in the remote unit,subsequent to the flowchart in FIG. 19.

FIG. 21 is a flowchart illustrating a process of providing thepositional information in the positional information service server.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart illustrating a process of providing articleinformation in the shop-information portal site server.

FIG. 23 is a flowchart illustrating a process of providing stockinformation in the stock management server.

FIG. 24 is a flowchart illustrating a process of presenting informationin the remote unit.

FIG. 25 is a flowchart illustrating a process of confirmingrecommendation in the remote unit.

FIG. 26 is a flowchart illustrating a process of providing routinginformation in the positional information service server.

FIG. 27 is a flowchart illustrating a route guiding process in theremote unit.

FIG. 28 is a flowchart illustrating a process of purchasing an article.

FIG. 29 is a flowchart illustrating a process of transmitting audioinformation in the remote unit.

FIG. 30 is a flowchart illustrating a process of recommending an articlebased on the audio information in the base unit.

FIG. 31 is a flowchart illustrating the process of recommending anarticle based on the audio information in the base unit, subsequent tothe flowchart in FIG. 30.

FIG. 32 is a flowchart illustrating a process of providing the articleinformation in the shop-information portal site server.

FIG. 33 is a flowchart illustrating a process of providing areainformation.

FIG. 34 shows an example in which the remote unit is used.

FIG. 35 shows an example of an image picked up by an imaging unit in theremote unit.

FIG. 36 shows an example of the display in a display in the remote unit.

FIG. 37 is a flowchart illustrating a process of providing a specialpicture.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 shows an example of the structure of a service providing systemof the present invention. Although a case in which article informationof articles sold in a shop is provided to a user is described in thefollowing description, this does not mean that the present invention islimited to the provision of the article information. That is, profitableinformation which the service providing system of the present inventionprovides to the user may be information other than the articleinformation.

In the service providing system in FIG. 1, an access point 4, ashop-information portal site server 5, a stock management server 6, anda positional information service server 7 are connected to a network 1including the Internet. An information processing apparatus 2 performswireless communication over a wireless local area network (LAN) with theaccess point 4 and is connected to the network 1 through the accesspoint 4. An information processing apparatus 3 performs communicationwith the information processing apparatus 2 using a Bluetoothtechnology. The information processing apparatus 3 may communicate withthe information processing apparatus 2 over the wireless LAN.

The shop-information portal site server 5 provides article informationof articles sold in shops (for example, the names, sizes, colors,prices, and/or characteristics of the articles) and others over thenetwork 1. The shop-information portal site server 5 has at least oneshop registered therein and provides the article information sold in theregistered shop over the network 1.

The stock management server 6 manages stock information of the articlesthat are sold in the shops registered in the shop-information portalsite server 5. The positional information service server 7 associatesobjects (for example, shops, companies, parks, and rivers) located atpredetermined longitudes and latitudes on a map with the correspondinglongitudes and the latitudes and stores the associated objects. When theinformation concerning a longitude and latitude is specified, thepositional information service server 7 determines an object located atthe specified longitude and latitude. When the positional informationservice server 7 receives the longitude and latitude of the currentposition of the user and the longitude and latitude of a destination,the positional information service server 7 determines the route fromthe current position of the user to the destination, generates routinginformation used for guiding the user to the destination, and transmitsthe generated routing information to the information processingapparatus (base unit) 2. The base unit 2 may have the information in thepositional information service server 7 and may generate the routinginformation instead of the positional information service server 7.

The user receiving a service from the service providing system of thepresent invention carries the information processing apparatus 2 and theinformation processing apparatus 3 as one set. The informationprocessing apparatus 2 is hereinafter also referred to as the base unit2. The information processing apparatus 3 is hereinafter also referredto as a remote unit 3. The remote unit 3, which has a sensor foracquiring multiple different pieces of information, acquires theinformation concerning the user through the sensor and transmits theacquired information to the base unit 2. The remote unit 3 also has afunction as electronic money. When the user pays the price using theremote unit 3, the remote unit 3 transmits, to the base unit 2, purchaseinformation including the name, price, and purchase date and time of anarticle purchased by the user.

The base unit 2 acquires, from the positional information service server7, the information concerning an object (for example, a shop, a company,a park, or a river) located at the current position of the user. Whenthe user is located at, for example, a shop, or when the user is locatednear the shop, the base unit 2 acquires the article information of thearticles sold in the shop from the shop-information portal site server 5over the network. In addition, the base unit 2 acquires the informationconcerning the user and the purchase information from the remote unit 3.The base unit 2 selects an article according to the user preferencebased on the article information supplied from the shop-informationportal site server 5, the information concerning the user, supplied fromthe remote unit 3, and the purchase information, transmits the articleinformation of the selected article to the remote unit 3, and causes theuser to recommend the selected article.

Furthermore, the base unit 2 notifies the positional information serviceserver 7 of the longitude and latitude of the current position of theuser and the destination, and acquires the routing information used forguiding the user to the destination from the positional informationservice server 7. The base unit 2 then causes the remote unit 3 topresent the acquired routing information. As described above, the baseunit 2 may have the information in the positional information serviceserver 7 and may generate the routing information instead of thepositional information service server 7.

The remote unit 3 is removable from the base unit 2. FIGS. 2 and 3illustrate how the remote unit 3 is removed from the base unit 2. FIG. 2illustrates a state in which the remote unit 3 is mounted in the baseunit 2. The base unit 2 and the remote unit 3 each have, for example, asubstantially hexagonal shape. The remote unit 3 is mounted in the baseunit 2 such that one corner of the remote unit 3 is superposed on onecorner of the base unit 2, as shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 3 shows an example illustrating how the remote unit 3 is removedfrom the base unit 2. As shown in FIG. 3, the remote unit 3 is removablefrom the base unit 2. The base unit 2 and the remote unit 3 each have asize allowing the user to carry the base unit 2 and the remote unit 3.The user can carry the base unit 2, for example, in his/her bag or thelike. The user can hold the remote unit 3 in his/her hand.

FIG. 4 shows an example of the size of the remote unit 3. As shown inFIG. 4, the remote unit 3 has a distance of 86 mm between the opposingsides and a thickness of about 30 mm. This size allows the user to holdthe remote unit 3 in his/her hand. FIG. 5 shows examples of theappearance and the internal structure of the remote unit 3. An exampleof the appearance of the remote unit 3 is shown in the left half of FIG.5 and an example of the internal structure of the remote unit 3 is shownin the right half of FIG. 5. As shown in the left half of FIG. 5, theremote unit 3 has, on its front face, a display 101 for displayingvarious directions and pictures picked up by an imaging unit 121 (referto FIG. 6); a microphone 102 for collecting sounds; atemperature-humidity sensor 103 for measuring the ambient temperatureand humidity; an integrated circuit (IC) communication unit 104 for usein transmission and reception of information to and from an IC cardreader-writer in a contact mode or a non-contact mode; and a speaker 105used for outputting the sounds. The display 101 is, for example a liquidcrystal display (LCD).

The IC communication unit 104 makes payment by electronic money throughthe communication with, for example, the IC card reader-writer. Althoughnot shown in FIG. 5, a light emitting diode (LED) 159 (refer to FIG. 7)is also arranged on the front face of the remote unit 3. As shown in theright half of FIG. 5, the face on which the display 101 of the remoteunit 3 is provided is referred to as the front face while the faceopposing the front face is referred to the rear face in the followingdescription.

FIG. 6 shows an example of the arrangement of components on the innerside of the rear face of the remote unit 3. As shown in FIG. 6, theremote unit 3 has the imaging unit 121, a wireless LAN communicationunit 122, a GPS antenna 123, vibrators 124-1 and 124-2, a GPS detectingunit 125, a Bluetooth communication unit 126, a magnetic sensor 127, atriaxial motion sensor 128, a battery 129, and a heartbeat detectionsensor 130, provided on the inner side of the rear face thereof.

The imaging unit 121 includes an imager, such as a charged coupleddevice (CCD) or a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS), andpicks up an image of an object around the remote unit 3. The imager isprovided on the surface side of the rear face of the remote unit 3. Thewireless LAN communication unit 122 performs communication over thewireless LAN. The GPS antenna 123 receives a satellite signaltransmitted from an artificial satellite for position measurement andsupplies the received satellite signal to the GPS detecting unit 125.The vibrators 124-1 and 124-2, each including a small motor, areprovided so as to be orthogonal to each other and vibrate vertically andhorizontally. The GPS detecting unit 125 calculates the longitude andlatitude or the like of the current position of the remote unit 3 basedon the satellite signal supplied from the GPS antenna 123. In thefollowing description, the information concerning the longitude andlatitude or the like, detected by the GPS detecting unit 125, is alsoreferred to as GPS information.

The Bluetooth communication unit 126 transmits and receives informationto and from the base unit 2 or the like using the Bluetooth technology.The magnetic sensor 127 magnetically reads information. The triaxialmotion sensor 128 detects a three-dimensional attitude angle of theremote unit 3 in real time. The battery 129 supplies power to eachcomponent of the remote unit 3. The heartbeat detection sensor 130 is asensor for detecting the heart rate of the user.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing an example of the electrical structureinside the remote unit 3. The description of the parts that have alreadybeen described is appropriately omitted.

A central processing unit (CPU) 151 controls the operation of eachcomponent of the remote unit 3 and performs a variety of processing inaccordance with programs stored in a read only memory (ROM) 152 orprograms loaded from a storage unit 154 into a random access memory(RAM) 153. Data required by the CPU 151 in order to perform the varietyof processing is also stored in the RAM 153.

The CPU 151, the ROM 152, and the RAM 153 are connected to each othervia a bus 155. The storage unit 154, the wireless LAN communication unit122, the Bluetooth communication unit 126, the IC communication unit104, an operation unit 156, the microphone 102, a heartbeat detectingunit 157, the temperature-humidity sensor 103, the GPS detecting unit125, the imaging unit 121, the triaxial motion sensor 128, the magneticsensor 127, the vibrators 124-1 and 124-2, an audio output controller158, the display 101, and the LED 159 are also connected to the bus 155.

The operation unit 156 has types of buttons, a jog dial, and others. Theuser operates the operation unit 156. The heartbeat detecting unit 157calculates the heart rate of the user based on the signal supplied fromthe heartbeat detection sensor 130. The audio output controller 158causes the speaker 105 to output a sound corresponding to the suppliedaudio information (electrical signal). The LED 159 emits light in orderto attract the user's attention to the remote unit 3, for example, inthe presentation of information to the user.

FIG. 8 shows an example of the size of the base unit 2. As shown in FIG.8, the base unit 2 has a distance of 155 mm between the opposing sidesand a thickness of about 30 mm. This size allows the user to store thebase unit 2 in, for example, a bag and to carry the base unit 2.

FIG. 9 shows an example of the electrical structure inside the base unit2. Referring to FIG. 9, a CPU 201 is, for example, a Pentium (registeredtrademark) processor of Intel Corporation and is connected to a frontside bus (FSB) 202. A north bridge 203 is connected to the FSB 202. Thenorth bridge 203 has an accelerated graphics port (AGP) 204 and isconnected to a hub interface 210.

The north bridge 203 is, for example, 440BX, which an AGP host bridgecontroller of Intel Corporation, and controls the CPU 201, a randomaccess memory (RAM) 209 (so-called main memory), and so on. The northbridge 203 further controls a video controller 205 via the AGP 204. Thevideo controller 205 controls an LCD 206 or a video graphics array (VGA)display (hereinafter referred to as a VGA 207).

The video controller 205 receives data (image data or text data)supplied from the CPU 201 to generate image data corresponding to thereceived data or to store the received data in its internal video memory(not shown). The video controller 205 causes the LCD 206 or the VGA 207to display the image corresponding to the image data stored in the videomemory. The LCD 206 or the VGA 207 displays an image or a characterbased on the data supplied from the video controller.

The north bridge 203 is also connected to a cache

memory 208. The cache memory 208 is a memory capable of performingwriting or reading at a higher rate, compared with the RAM 209, whichis, for example, a static RAM (SRAM), and caches (temporarily stores)the program or data used by the CPU 201.

The CPU 201 includes a primary cache which is capable of operating at ahigher rate than the cache memory 208 and which the CPU 201 controls.

The RAM 209 is, for example, a dynamic RAM (DRAM) and stores the programexecuted by the CPU 201 or the data required for the operation by theCPU 201. Specifically, the RAM 204 stores an operating system loadedfrom a hard disk drive (HDD) 223 or an Internet program on completion ofthe activation.

The operation system (operating system (OS), which is typified by, forexample, Windows XP (registered trademark) of Microsoft Corporation orMac OS (registered trademark) of Apple Computer Inc., is a program forcontrolling basic operations of the computer.

The north bridge 203 is also connected to a south bridge 211 via the hubinterface 210. The south bridge 211 is, for example, PIIX4E of IntelCorporation and includes an AC link interface 211A, a universal serialbus (USB) interface 211B, an integrated drive electronics (IDE)interface 211C, a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) interface211D, a low pin count (LPC) interface 211E, an LAN interface 211F, andso on.

The south bridge 211 performs various input-output (I/O) controls. Forexample, the south bridge 211 controls devices connected thereto via anAC link bus 212, a USB bus 217, or an IDE bus 222.

A modem 213 and a sound controller 214 are connected to the AC link bus212. When the modem 213 is connected to a public switched network, themodem 213 performs communication over the public switched network or theInternet, which is not shown. The sound controller 214 captures a soundwith a microphone 215 to generate the data corresponding to the soundand supplies the data to the RAM 209. The sound controller 214 alsodrives a speaker 216 to cause the speaker 216 to output a sound.

A USB connector 218 is connected to the USB bus 217 of the south bridge211. Various USB devices can be connected to the USB connector 218. Amemory stick slot 219 and a Bluetooth communication unit 221 areconnected to the south bridge 211 through the USB bus 217. A memorystick (registered trademark) 220 is connected to the memory stick slot219.

The memory stick 220 is a type of a flash memory card developed by SonyCorporation, which is the applicant of the present invention. The memorystick 220 is manufactured by housing a flash memory device, which is atype of an electrically erasable and programmable read only memory(EEPROM), in a small and thin case made of plastic. The EEPROM is anon-volatile memory capable of being electrically rewritten or erased. Avariety of data concerning images, sounds, and music can be written toor read from the memory stick 220 through a 10-pin terminal.

The Bluetooth communication unit 221 performs communication conformingto the Bluetooth standard. The USB interface 211B is used to transmitdata to external devices connected through the USB bus 217 and receivedata from the devices.

The IDE interface 221C includes two IDE controllers, that is, a primaryIDE controller and a secondary IDE controller, a configuration register,and so on, which are not shown in FIG. 9.

The HDD 223 is connected to the primary IDE controller through the IDEbus 222. When a so-called IDE device, such as a CD-ROM device 224 or anHDD (not shown), is mounted to another IDE bus, the mounted IDE deviceis electrically connected to the secondary IDE controller.

A wireless LAN communication unit 225 is connected to the network inwireless LAN communication, such as IEEE802.11a or IEEE802.11b. Data istransmitted to and received from the network connected to the wirelessLAN communication unit 225 through the LAN interface 211F.

A basic input output system (BIOS) 252, an input-output (I/O) interface253, and a controller 256 are connected to an LPC bus 251. The BIOS 252is a group of programs in which basic operation instructions of the baseunit 2 are collected and is stored in, for example a read only memory(ROM). The BIOS 252 controls data passing (input and output) between theOS or an application program and peripheral devices.

The I/O interface 253, to which a serial pin 254 and a parallel pin 255are connected, passes data to devices connected to the serial pin 254and the parallel pin 255. A jog dial 259 and a battery 260 are connectedto the controller 256. A keyboard 258 and a mouse 257 may be connectedto the controller 256.

A PC card interface 229 and an IEEE1394 interface 227 are connected to aPCI bus 226. The PC card interface 229 supplies data supplied from adevice (card) connected to the a slot 230 to the CPU 201 or the RAM 209,and outputs data supplied from the CPU 201 to the card connected to thePC card slot. A drive 231 may be connected to the PCI bus 226 through aslot 33 and a PC card interface 78.

The drive 231 reads out data stored in a magnetic disk 241, an opticaldisk 242, a magneto-optical disk 243, or a semiconductor memory 244,which is inserted into the drive 231, and supplies the readout data tothe RAM 209. The drive 231 also stores data generated in the processingin the CPU 201 in the magnetic disk 241, the optical disk 242, themagneto-optical disk 243, or the semiconductor memory 244, which isinserted into the drive 231.

The IEEE1394 interface 227 transmits and receives data conforming toIEEE1394 standard (data stored in a packet) through an IEEE1394 port228.

FIG. 10 shows an example of the internal structure of theshop-information portal site server 5. Referring to FIG. 10, a CPU 301performs a variety of processing in accordance with programs stored in aROM 302 or programs loaded from an HDD 304 into a RAM 303. Data whichthe CPU 301 requires to perform the variety of processing is also storedin the RAM 303.

The CPU 301, the ROM 302, the RAM 303, and the HDD 304 are connected toeach other through a bus 305. An input-output interface 306 is alsoconnected to the bus 305.

A keyboard 307; a mouse 308; an audio outputting unit 309, such as aspeaker; a display 310, such as a cathode ray tube (CRT) or an LCD; acommunication unit 311 including a modem, a terminal adaptor, and so on;and a printer 312 are connected to the input-output interfaceinput-output interface 306. The communication unit 311 performscommunication processing over the network 1 including the Internet.

A drive 313 is also connected to the input-output interface 306, ifrequired. A magnetic disk 321, an optical disk 322, a magneto-opticaldisk 323, or a semiconductor memory 324 are appropriately inserted intothe drive 313. Computer programs read from the magnetic disk 321, theoptical disk 322, the magneto-optical disk 323, or the semiconductormemory 324 are installed in the HDD 304, if required.

FIG. 11 shows an example of the internal structure of the stockmanagement server 6. Components from a CPU 351 to a semiconductor memory374 in the stock management server 6 has basically the same structure asthe components from the CPU 301 to the semiconductor memory 324 in theshop-information portal site server 5, shown in FIG. 10. The componentshaving the same name have the same functions. Accordingly, a descriptionof the components is omitted here.

FIG. 12 shows an example of the internal structure of the positionalinformation service server 7. Components from a CPU 401 to asemiconductor memory 424 in the positional information service server 7has basically the same structure as the components from the CPU 301 tothe semiconductor memory 324 in the shop-information portal site server5, shown in FIG. 10. The components having the same name have the samefunctions. Accordingly, a description of the components is omitted here.

The summary of the service providing system of the present inventionwill now be described with reference to the flowchart in FIG. 13. FIG.13 shows a service providing process in the service providing system ofthe present invention.

Referring FIG. 13, in Step S101, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3acquires information supplied from the sensors including the microphone102, the heartbeat detecting unit 157, the temperature-humidity sensor103, the GPS detecting unit 125, the imaging unit 121, the triaxialmotion sensor 128, and the magnetic sensor 127 or purchase informationof an article, when payment is performed through the IC communicationunit 104. The information supplied from the sensors and the purchaseinformation are hereinafter also collectively referred to as userinformation.

In Step S102, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 transmits the userinformation acquired in Step S101 to the base unit 2 through theBluetooth communication unit 126.

In Step S121, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 receives the userinformation transmitted by the remote unit 3 in Step S102 through theBluetooth communication unit 221 and stores the received userinformation in the HDD 223.

The shop-information portal site server 5 stores a database includingthe information concerning the articles sold in the shop in the HDD 304.In Step S131, the CPU 301 in the shop-information portal site server 5transmits the information stored in the database (hereinafter alsoreferred to as database information) to the base unit 2 through thecommunication unit 311.

In Step S122, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 receives the databaseinformation transmitted by the shop-information portal site server 5 inStep S131 through the wireless LAN communication unit 225 and stores thereceived database information in the HDD 223.

In Step S123, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 performs data mining basedon the user information received and stored in Step S121 and thedatabase information received and stored in Step S122 to selectinformation anticipated being useful to the user. The CPU 201 thengenerates information to be recommended to the user (the informationrecommended to the user is hereinafter also referred to asrecommendation information) based on the selected information. Anexisting method, such as a genetic algorithm or AI, is used in the datamining.

Learning in the operation history (or the sensing history) of the userwith the remote unit 3, the purchase of articles, and the operationhistory, such as Web browsing, of the user with the base unit 2 in thedata mining can draw inference better suited to the preference orinteresting of the user. The data mining based on the operation historyof the user may be performed at a timing other than the timing when theuser information is received from the remote unit 3 (Step S123). Forexample, the operation history of the user may be accumulated in advancefor a predetermined time for the learning in the data mining.

In Step S124, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 requests, through theBluetooth communication unit 221, the remote unit 3 to recommend therecommendation information generated in Step S123.

In Step S103, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 receives the request forthe recommendation of the recommendation information from the base unit2 through the Bluetooth communication unit 126. In Step S104, the CPU151 in the remote unit 3 presents the information to the user inresponse to the request received in Step S103.

The service providing process is performed in the manner describedabove.

The user information is supplied from the remote unit 3 to the base unit2 in Step S101, Step S102, and Step S121 in FIG. 13. Specifically, theprocessing in these steps is performed according to, for example, aflowchart shown in FIG. 14 or FIG. 15.

An example of the process of supplying the user information from theremote unit 3 to the base unit 2 will now be described with reference tothe flowchart in FIG. 14. In Step S161, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2requests the user information from the remote unit 3 through theBluetooth communication unit 221. The user information requested in StepS161 may be any of, for example, the audio information acquired by themicrophone 102, the heart rate of the user calculated by the heartbeatdetecting unit 157, the temperature and humidity detected by thetemperature-humidity sensor 103, the longitude and latitude measured bythe GPS detecting unit 125, the object an image of which is picked up bythe imaging unit 121, the three-dimensional attitude angle detected bythe triaxial motion sensor 128, and the information detected by themagnetic sensor 127 or may be any combination of the above information.Or, all of the above information may be detected here.

In Step S151, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 receives the request forthe user information from the base unit 2 through the Bluetoothcommunication unit 126. In Step S152, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3acquires the user information supplied from the sensors including themicrophone 102, the heartbeat detecting unit 157, thetemperature-humidity sensor 103, the GPS detecting unit 125, the imagingunit 121, the triaxial motion sensor 128, and the magnetic sensor 127.The information acquired by the CPU 151 in Step S152 is the informationrequested by the base unit 2 in Step S161. In other words, the CPU 151does not necessarily acquire the information from all of the microphone102, the heartbeat detecting unit 157, the temperature-humidity sensor103, the GPS detecting unit 125, the imaging unit 121, the triaxialmotion sensor 128, and the magnetic sensor 127 but acquires only theinformation requested by the base unit 2. For example, when theinformation concerning the temperature is requested by the base unit 2,the CPU 151 acquires only the information concerning the temperaturefrom the temperature-humidity sensor 103.

In Step S153, the CPU 151 transmits the user information acquired inStep S152 to the base unit 2 through the Bluetooth communication unit126.

In Step S162, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 receives the userinformation transmitted by the remote unit 3 in Step S153 through theBluetooth communication unit 221. In Step S163, the CPU 201 in the baseunit 2 stores the user information received in Step S162 in the HDD 223.

The user information is supplied from the remote unit 3 to the base unit2 in the manner described above. As described above, the remote unit 3can acquire the user information requested by the base unit 2 and supplythe acquired user information to the base unit 2.

An example, different from the one shown in FIG. 14, of the process ofsupplying the user information from the remote unit 3 to the base unit 2will now be described with reference to the flowchart in FIG. 15.

In the example in FIG. 15, the timing of acquisition of the userinformation is set in advance in the remote unit 3. In Step S181, theCPU 151 in the remote unit 3 determines whether it is time to acquirethe user information. The CPU 151 repeats the processing in Step S181and is on standby until the CPU 151 determines that it is time toacquire the user information.

For example, the remote unit 3 can be set in advance so as to transmitthe temperature information to the base unit 2 every minute. With thissetting, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 determines whether it is timeto acquire the user information (temperature information) every minutein Step S181.

If the CPU 151 determines that it is time to acquire the userinformation in Step S181, the process proceeds to Step S182. In StepS182, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 acquires the user informationdetermined to be acquired in Step S181.

Since the processing in Step S183 is the same as that in Step S153 inFIG. 14, a description is omitted here. In addition, since theprocessing in the base unit 2 in Step S191 and Step S192 is the same asthat in Step S162 and Step S163 in FIG. 14, respectively, a descriptionis omitted here.

As described with reference to the flowchart in FIG. 15, the remote unit3 may automatically acquire the user information at a predeterminedtiming that is set in advance and supply the user information to thebase unit 2.

The database information is supplied from the shop-information portalsite server 5 to the base unit 2 in Step S131 and Step S122 in FIG. 13.Specifically, the processing in these steps is performed according to,for example, a flowchart shown in FIG. 16 or FIG. 17.

An example of the process of supplying the database information from theshop-information portal site server 5 to the base unit 2 will now bedescribed with reference to the flowchart in FIG. 16. In Step S201, theCPU 201 in the base unit 2 requests the database information from theshop-information portal site server 5 through the wireless LANcommunication unit 225. The database information requested in Step S201is, for example, information concerning the price, size, or color of anarticle sold in the shop.

In Step S211, the CPU 301 in the shop-information portal site server 5receives the request for the database information from the base unit 2through the communication unit 311. In Step S212, the CPU 301 in theshop-information portal site server 5 reads out the database informationfrom the HDD 304 and transmits the readout database information to thebase unit 2 through the communication unit 311.

In Step S202, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 receives the userinformation transmitted by the shop-information portal site server 5 inStep S212 through the wireless LAN communication unit 225. In Step S203,the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 stores the database information receivedin Step S202 in the HDD 223.

The database information is supplied from the shop-information portalsite server 5 to the base unit 2 in the manner described above. Asdescribed above, the shop-information portal site server 5 can supplythe database information requested by the base unit 2 to the base unit2.

An example, different from the one shown in FIG. 16, of the process ofsupplying the database information from the shop-information portal siteserver 5 to the base unit 2 will now be described with reference to theflowchart in FIG. 17.

In the example in FIG. 17, the timing of supply of the databaseinformation to the base unit 2 is set in advance in the shop-informationportal site server 5. In Step S241, the CPU 301 in the shop-informationportal site server 5 determines whether it is time to transmit thedatabase information. The CPU 301 repeats the processing in Step S241and is on standby until the CPU 301 determines that it is time totransmit the database information.

For example, the shop-information portal site server 5 can be set inadvance so as to transmit the information concerning daily bargains tothe base unit 2 every day. With this setting, the CPU 301 in theshop-information portal site server 5 determines whether it is time toacquire the database information every day in Step S241.

If the CPU 301 determines that it is time to acquire the databaseinformation in Step S241, the process proceeds to Step S242. In StepS242, the CPU 301 in the shop-information portal site server 5 reads outthe database information from the HDD 304 and transmits the readoutdatabase information to the base unit 2 through the communication unit311.

Since the processing in the base unit 2 in Step S231 and Step S232 isthe same as that in Step S202 and Step S203 in FIG. 16, respectively, adescription is omitted here.

As described with reference to the flowchart in FIG. 17, theshop-information portal site server 5 may automatically transmit thedatabase information to the base unit 2 at a predetermined timing thatis set in advance.

In Step S123, the base unit 2 selects information anticipated beinguseful to the user based on the user information and the databaseinformation acquired in the manner described above. In Step S124, thebase unit 2 requests the remote unit 3 to recommend the informationselected in Step S123.

Conventionally, the processing performed by the base unit 2 in Step S123has been performed by a server provided on the network 1. In such acase, it is necessary to transmit the private information of the user tothe server over the network 1. In contrast, storing and managing theuser information in the base unit 2 owned by the user, as in the serviceproviding system of the present invention, prevents the user informationfrom being transmitted to the server on the network 1, thus reducing thepossibility of leakage of the private information of the user.

Examples in which the service providing system of the present inventionis applied to specific situations will be described below.

First, a process of recommending an article to the user based onpositional information will now be described with reference to theflowcharts in FIGS. 18 to 27. FIG. 18 shows a process of transmittingGPS information in the remote unit 3. FIGS. 19 and 20 show a process ofrecommending an article based on the positional information in the baseunit 2. FIG. 21 shows a process of providing the positional informationin the positional information service server 7. FIG. 22 shows a processof providing article information in the shop-information portal siteserver 5. FIG. 23 shows a process of providing stock information in thestock management server 6. FIG. 24 shows a process of presentinginformation in the remote unit 3. FIG. 25 shows a process of confirmingrecommendation in the remote unit 3. FIG. 26 shows a process ofproviding routing information in the positional information serviceserver 7. FIG. 27 shows a route guiding process in the remote unit 3.

For example, the remote unit 3 is set in advance so as to acquire theGPS information for every ten minutes. When it is time to acquire theGPS information, the remote unit 3 performs the process of transmittingthe GPS information shown in FIG. 18. Referring to FIG. 18, in Step 301,the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 acquires the GPS information throughthe GPS detecting unit 125. In Step S302, the CPU 151 in the remote unit3 transmits the GPS information to the base unit 2 through the Bluetoothcommunication unit 126.

The base unit 2 starts the process of recommending an article based onthe positional information, shown in FIG. 19. Referring to FIG. 19, inStep S321, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 receives the GPS informationtransmitted by the remote unit 3 in Step S302 through the Bluetoothcommunication unit 221 and stores the received GPS information in theHDD 223. In Step S322, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 transmits the GPSinformation to the positional information service server 7 through thewireless LAN communication unit 225 and requests information concerninga building, a shop, a facility, or the like, located at the locationcorresponding to the GPS information (the longitude and latitude) (theinformation concerning a building, a shop, a facility, or the like,located at the location corresponding to the GPS information, ishereinafter also referred to as the positional information).

The positional information service server 7 performs the process ofproviding the positional information, shown in FIG. 21. Referring toFIG. 21, in Step S361, the CPU 401 in the positional information serviceserver 7 receives the request for transmission of the GPS informationand the positional information, transmitted by the base unit 2 in StepS322. In Step S362, the CPU 401 in the positional information serviceserver 7 reads out the positional information corresponding to the GPSinformation received in Step S361 from the HDD 404 and transmits theread out positional information to the base unit 2 through thecommunication unit 411.

Referring back to FIG. 19, in Step S323, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2receives the positional information transmitted by the positionalinformation service server 7 in Step S362 through the wireless LANcommunication unit 225. In Step S324, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2determines whether the user is located in the shop based on thepositional information. If the user is not located in the shop, theprocess goes back to Step S321 and repeats the steps subsequent to StepS321.

If the CPU 201 determines in Step S324 that the user is located in theshop, the process proceeds to Step S325. Although the base unit 2determines only whether the user is located at the shop at the presentmoment in Step S324 in the above description, the base unit 2 maydetermine that the user is located in the shop, for example, when theuser is located in the same shop for a time period longer than apredetermined time period that is set in advance and, then, the processmay proceed to Step S325.

In other words, the base unit 2 periodically may acquire the GPSinformation from the remote unit 3 and may determine whether the user islocated in the same shop for a predetermined time period based on theGPS information. If the user is located in the same shop for a timeperiod longer than the predetermined time period that is set in advance,the base unit 2 determines that the user is located in the shop and theprocess proceeds to Step S325.

Although the case in which the user is located in the shop is describedabove, the base unit 2 may determine whether the user is located nearthe shop.

The HDD 223 in the base unit 2 stores the history of articles which theuser has purchased (the history of the articles which the user haspurchased is hereinafter referred to as shopping history). In Step S325,the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 determines a preference of the user basedon the shopping history. The determination is performed based on anexisting data mining method. For example, a manufacturer or brand ofcosmetics which the user frequently purchases or a color according touser preference is determined in Step S325.

In Step S326, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 requests informationconcerning the articles sold in the shop where the user is currentlylocated (the information concerning the articles sold in a shop ishereinafter referred to as article information) from theshop-information portal site server 5 through the wireless LANcommunication unit 225.

The shop-information portal site server 5 starts the process ofproviding the information concerning the article shown in FIG. 22.Referring to FIG. 22, in Step S381, the CPU 301 in the shop-informationportal site server 5 receives the request for the article informationtransmitted by the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 in Step S326 through thecommunication unit 311. In Step S382, the CPU 301 in theshop-information portal site server 5 requests information on whetherthe article currently sold in the shop where the user is located is instock (the information on whether the article currently sold is in stockis hereinafter referred to as stock information) from the stockmanagement server 6 through the communication unit 311.

The stock management server 6 performs the process of providing thestock information shown in FIG. 23. Referring to FIG. 23, in Step S401,the CPU 351 in the stock management server 6 receives the request forthe stock information transmitted by the shop-information portal siteserver 5 in Step S382 through the communication unit 361. At this time,the stock management server 6 stores the stock information of thearticle currently sold in the shop where the user is located in the HDD354. In Step S402, the CPU 351 in the stock management server 6 readsout the stock information from the HDD 354 and transmits the readoutstock information to the shop-information portal site server 5 throughthe communication unit 361.

Referring to back to FIG. 22, in Step S383, the CPU 301 in theshop-information portal site server 5 receives the stock informationtransmitted by the stock management server 6 in Step S402 through thecommunication unit 311. In Step S384, the CPU 301 in theshop-information portal site server 5 generates article information tobe supplied to the base unit 2 based on the stock information receivedin Step S383. In Step S385, the CPU 301 in the shop-information portalsite server 5 transmits the article information generated in Step S384to the base unit 2 through the communication unit 311.

Referring back to FIG. 19, in Step S327, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2receives the article information transmitted by the shop-informationportal site server 5 in Step S385 through the wireless LAN communicationunit 225 and stores the received article information in the HDD 223. InStep S328, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 selects an article to berecommended to the user based on the user preference determined in StepS325 and the article information received in Step S327. In other words,the CPU 201 selects an article suited to the user preference from thelist of articles that are included in the article information and thatare sold in the shop where the user is located. The CPU 201 selects anarticle suited to the user preference based on, for example, whether apredetermined keyword (such as a user's favorite brand name) isassociated with the article.

There is possibly no article suited to the user preference in Step S328.Accordingly, in Step S329, the CPU 201 determines whether the article tobe recommended to the user is present in the processing in Step S328. Ifthe article to be recommended to the user is present, the processproceeds to Step S330.

In Step S330, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 transmits the informationconcerning the article (for example, the information concerning theprice or characteristics of the article) selected in Step S328 to theremote unit 3 through the Bluetooth communication unit 221 and requeststhe remote unit 3 to recommend the article.

The remote unit 3 performs the process of presenting the informationshown in FIG. 24. In Step S421, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3receives, through the Bluetooth communication unit 126, the informationconcerning the article and the request to recommend the article,transmitted by the base unit 2 in Step S330, and stores the receivedinformation and request in the RAM 153. In Step S422, the CPU 151 in theremote unit 3 presents the information concerning the article, receivedin Step S421. Specifically, for example, the CPU 151 vibrates thevibrators 124-1 and 124-2 and turns on the LED 159 or causes the LED 159to blink. The CPU 151 then displays the information concerning thearticle (for example, an image, characteristics, and the price of thearticle) in the display 101. The CPU 151 also causes the speaker 105through the audio output controller 158 to output a sound for guidingthe article.

The user carrying the remote unit 3 in his/her hand takes notice of theremote unit 3 owing to the vibration of the vibrators 124-1 and 124-2.The user can browse the guide to the article suited to the userpreference. The guide to the article includes a message displayed in thedisplay 101 and an audio guide output from the speaker 105. The articlerecommended here is the article currently sold in the shop where theuser is located.

Referring back to FIG. 19, if the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 determinesin Step S329 that the article to be recommended to the user is notpresent in the processing in Step S328, the process proceeds to StepS331 in FIG. 20. In Step S331, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 requeststhe remote unit 3, through the Bluetooth communication unit 221, todetermine whether another article is to be recommended.

The remote unit 3 performs the process of confirming the recommendationshown in FIG. 25. In Step S441, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3receives the request to determine whether another article is to berecommended, transmitted by the base unit 2 in Step S331. In Step S442,the CPU 151 in remote unit 3 urges the user to determine whether anotherarticle is to be recommended. Specifically, the CPU 151 vibrates thevibrators 124-1 and 124-2 and turns on the LED 159 or causes the LED 159to blink in order to call the user's attention to the remote unit 3. TheCPU 151 then displays in the display 101 a message, such as “the shophas recommended clothes but it is out of stock. Would you like to lookfor clothes suiting you well?”.

A keyword used when another article is to be recommended (“look for” inthe description below) and a keyword used when another article is not tobe recommended (“stop” in the description below) are registered in theremote unit 3 in advance. When the user wants the recommendation ofanother article, the user speaks to the remote unit 3 the keyword “lookfor” used when another article is to be recommended. When the user doesnot want the recommendation of another article, the user speaks to theremote unit 3 the keyword “stop” used when another article is not to berecommended. The word the user speaks is collected by the microphone102. The CPU 151 activates an audio recognition program to recognize thesound collected by the microphone 102. In Step S443, the CPU 151 in theremote unit 3 determines whether the word the user speaks coincides withthe keyword “look for” as a result of the audio recognition. If the wordthe user speaks coincides with the keyword “look for”, the processproceeds to Step S444.

In Step S444, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 notifies the base unit 2through the Bluetooth communication unit 126 that another article is tobe recommended.

If the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 determines in Step S443 that theword the user speaks does not coincide with the keyword “look for”, thatis, if the CPU 151 determines that the word the user speaks is thekeyword “stop” used when another article is not to be recommended orthat the word the user speaks does not coincide with the keyword “lookfor” nor “stop”, the processing in Step S444 is skipped and the processof confirming the recommendation is finished. In this case, noinformation is transmitted to the base unit 2. The base unit 2 sets atimer for a predetermined time (for example, one minute) immediatelyafter the base unit 2 requests the remote unit 3 to determine whetheranother article is to be recommended in Step S331. If no reply istransmitted from the remote unit 3 before the predetermined time thetimer is set for elapsed, the base unit 2 determines that the remoteunit 3 does not recommend another article and the process is finished.

With the timer set in this manner, even when the user does not aware ofthe urgency in Step S442, the base unit 2 need not continue to wait forthe reply from the remote unit 3.

Referring back to FIG. 20, in Step S332, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2receives the notification that another article is to be recommended,transmitted by the remote unit 3 in Step S444, through the Bluetoothcommunication unit 221. In Step S333, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2determines a preference of the user based on the past shopping historystored in the HDD 223.

In Step S334, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 requests the articleinformation of the articles sold in another shop near the location ofthe user from the shop-information portal site server 5 through thewireless LAN communication unit 225.

The shop-information portal site server 5 performs the process ofproviding the article information shown in FIG. 22. Since the process ofproviding the article information in FIG. 22 is performed in the mannerdescribed above, the process is briefly described here. In Step S381,the CPU 301 in the shop-information portal site server 5 receives therequest for the article information, transmitted by the CPU 201 in thebase unit 2 in Step S334, through the communication unit 311. In StepS382, the CPU 301 in the shop-information portal site server 5 requeststhe stock information of the articles currently sold in the shop nearthe location of the user from the stock management server 6 through thecommunication unit 311.

The stock management server 6 performs the process of providing thestock information shown in FIG. 23. The process of providing the stockinformation in FIG. 23 is performed as described above. That is, in StepS401, the CPU 351 in the stock management server 6 receives the requestfor the stock information, transmitted by the shop-information portalsite server 5 in Step S382, through the communication unit 361. In StepS402, the CPU 351 in the stock management server 6 reads out the stockinformation from the HDD 354 and transmits the readout stock informationto the shop-information portal site server 5 through the communicationunit 361. The stock information transmitted here is the stockinformation of the shop near the location of the user.

Referring back to FIG. 22, in Step S383, the CPU 301 in theshop-information portal site server 5 receives the stock informationtransmitted by the stock management server 6 in Step S402 through thecommunication unit 311. In Step S384, the CPU 301 in theshop-information portal site server 5 generates article information tobe supplied to the base unit 2 based on the stock information. In StepS385, the CPU 301 in the shop-information portal site server 5 transmitsthe article information generated in Step S384 to the base unit 2through the communication unit 311.

Referring back to FIG. 20, in Step S335, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2receives the article information, transmitted by the shop-informationportal site server 5 in Step S385, through the wireless LANcommunication unit 225 and stores the received article information inthe HDD 223. In Step S336, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 selects anarticle to be recommended to the user based on the list, set in advanceby the user, of the articles which the user wants to purchase, the userpreference determined in Step S333, and the article information receivedin Step S335. In this selection (data mining), the CPU 201 in the baseunit 2 selects, for example, the article that was recommended in a pastsimilar situation or the article purchased by a person having a tastesimilar to that of the user, based on the past information detected bythe sensors, data concerning the tendency in purchased articles,determined from the information concerning online shopping (onlinepayment), and the information detected by the sensors when the serviceproviding system is used for other purposes.

In Step S337, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 requests the positionalinformation of the shop where the article selected in Step S336 is soldand routing information representing the route to the shop from thepositional information service server 7 through the wireless LANcommunication unit 225.

The positional information service server 7 performs the process ofproviding the routing information shown in FIG. 26. In Step S461, theCPU 401 in the positional information service server 7 receives therequest for the positional information of the shop where the article issold and the routing information representing the route to the shop,transmitted by the base unit 2 in Step S337, through the communicationunit 411.

The HDD 404 in the positional information service server 7 storesmultiple shops that are located in a predetermined area and thepositional information associated with the multiple shops. In Step S462,the CPU 401 in the positional information service server 7 reads out thepositional information of the shop where the article is sold from theHDD 404 in response to the request received in Step S461. In Step S463,the CPU 401 in the positional information service server 7 generatesrouting information for guiding the user to the shop based on thecurrent position of the user and the positional information of the shopdetermined in Step S462.

In Step S464, the CPU 401 in the positional information service server 7transmits the positional information determined in Step S462 and therouting information generated in Step S463 to the base unit 2 throughthe communication unit 411.

Referring back to FIG. 20, in Step S338, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2receives the positional information and the routing information,transmitted by the positional information service server 7 in Step S464,through the wireless LAN communication unit 225 and stores the receivedpositional information and routing information in the HDD 223. In StepS339, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 transmits the positionalinformation and the routing information, received in Step S338, to theremote unit 3 through the Bluetooth communication unit 221.

The remote unit 3 performs the route guiding process shown in FIG. 27.In Step S481, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 receives the positionalinformation and the routing information, transmitted by the base unit 2in Step S339, through the Bluetooth communication unit 126. In StepS482, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 stores the received positionalinformation and routing information in the storage unit 154. The routinginformation includes the position (longitude and latitude) of a corner,which serves as a landmark for guiding the user to the shop. When theuser reaches a corner, the CPU 151 uses the vibrators 124-1 and 124-2 orthe like to present the destination based on the GPS information fromthe GPS detecting unit 125.

In Step S483, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 determines whether theuser is located at a point where a guide is to be presented based on therouting information and the GPS information from the GPS detecting unit125. The CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 repeats the processing in StepS483 until the CPU 151 determines that the user is located at a pointwhere the guide is to be presented and is on standby. Since it isnecessary to present the destination (direction of travel) to the userimmediately after the CPU 151 stores the routing information in StepS482, the CPU 151 determines, in Step S483, whether the user is locatedat a point where the guide is to be presented immediately after theprocessing in Step S482, and the process proceeds to Step S484.

In Step S484, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 reads out a guide to bepresented corresponding to the longitude and latitude in the GPSinformation from the routing information and presents the readout guideto the user. In other words, the routing information is information inwhich the longitude and latitude of a corner is associated with thedirection of travel (right-hand turn or left-hand turn) of the user.When the user reaches a corner, the CPU 151 vibrates the vibrators 124-1and 124-2 and turns on the LED 159 or causes the LED 159 to blink toattract the user's attention to the remote unit 3. The CPU 151 thendisplays a message (for example, a message “turn right”) in the display101 or causes the speaker 105 through the audio output controller 158 tooutput an audio guide “turn right” to present the destination to theuser.

In Step S485, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 determines whether theuser reaches the target shop (the shop where the recommended article issold) based on the GPS information and the positional information. Ifthe user does not reach the target shop, the process goes back to StepS483 to repeat the steps subsequent to Step S483.

Repeating the steps from Step S483 to Step S485 ensures that the guideis presented to the user at the point where the user should turn. If theuser reaches the target shop, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3determines in Step S485 that the user reaches the target shop, and theroute guiding process is finished.

The article suited to the user preference can be presented to the userin the manner described above. Since the information concerning theshopping history or preference of the user is held and managed by thebase unit 2, it is possible to reduce leakage of the private informationof the user. Accordingly, compared with a case in which the privateinformation including the shopping history or preference of the user ismanaged by a server on the network, the safety on the network can beimproved.

Although the location of the user is determined based on the GPSinformation acquired by the GPS antenna 123 and the GPS detecting unit125 of the remote unit 3 in the above description, the location of theuser may be determined by other means, instead of the GPS information.For example, the location of the user may be determined by picking up animage of the logo or look of the shop by the imaging unit 121 in theremote unit 3 and analyzing the image. A detailed location of the usermay be determined by using the rough location of the user determinedbased on the GPS information and the image picked up by the imaging unit121.

Alternatively, the remote unit 3 may receive the ID identifying a shopto recognize the shop. In this case, the ID is transmitted by alow-speed communication module, such as an RF communication module,provided in the shop. In the case of a shop having an access point of awireless LAN installed therein and providing a connection service (aso-called hotspot service) to the Internet, the ID identifying the shopmay be transmitted from the access point of the wireless LAN to theremote unit 3. Or, a shop may be determined by picking up an image of abarcode tag, such as a CyberCode (trademark), provided in the shop bythe imaging unit 121, analyzing the image, and recognizing the ID.

Furthermore, the location (station) of the user may be determined inconjunction with a super urban intelligent card (Suica), which is anon-contact type IC card.

When an article to be recommended to the user is clothes, images ofclothes possessed by the user may be picked up by the imaging unit 121and the preference of the user may be analyzed based on the images toselect the article to be recommended to the user.

Although the vibration or turning on (blinking) of the remote unit 3 isused to guide the user to the shop (the route guiding process in FIG.27) in the above description, a map may be displayed in the display 101,as in a car navigation system, to guide the user to the shop.

Next, a process of purchasing an article by the user will now bedescribed with reference to the flowchart in FIG. 28. Since the remoteunit 3 is provided with the IC communication unit 104, the remote unit 3has a function as electronic money. When the user pays for an article inthe shop through the IC communication unit 104, in Step S501, the CPU151 in the remote unit 3 stores the article information, including thename and price of the purchased article, and the purchase information,including the purchase date and time, in the storage unit 154. In stepS502, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 transmits the purchaseinformation stored in the storage unit 154 in Step S501 to the base unit2 through the Bluetooth communication unit 126.

In Step S511, the CPU 151 in the base unit 2 receives the purchaseinformation transmitted by the remote unit 3 in Step S502 through theBluetooth communication unit 221. In Step S512, the CPU 151 in the baseunit 2 stores the purchase information received in Step S511 in the HDD223.

The purchase information of the article purchased by the user is storedin the HDD 223 in the base unit 2 in the manner described above. Thepurchase information accumulated in the HDD 223 in this manner is usedas shopping history information (the processing in Step S325 in FIG. 19and the processing in Step S333 in FIG. 20).

Although the purchase information of the user can be acquired in theabove description when the article is purchased through the ICcommunication unit 104, the purchase information cannot be acquired whenthe article is not purchased through the IC communication unit 104.Accordingly, in order to identify the article purchased by the user, thehistory of the articles purchased by the user may be acquired from, forexample, a card company with which the user is affiliated in advance.Or, the article purchased by the user may be identified by reading thebarcode or the like on the article. When the user inputs the informationconcerning a housekeeping book in the base unit 2, the informationconcerning the housekeeping book, input in the base unit 2, may be usedto identify the article purchased by the user.

Although an article is recommended based on the position (GPSinformation) where the user is located in the above description, anarticle may be recommended to the user based on information other thanthe positional information according to the present invention.

Next, a case in which an article is recommended to the user based onaudio information will now be described with reference to the flowchartsin FIGS. 29 to 32.

When the user speaks to the remote unit 3 about an article the userwants to buy, for example, when the user speaks a message “I want to buya jacket matched with the pants I previously bought”, in Step S591 inFIG. 29, the microphone 102 in the remote unit 3 collects the sound. Instep S592, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 transmits the audioinformation collected in Step S591 to the base unit 2 through theBluetooth communication unit 126.

The base unit 2 starts a process of recommending an article based on theaudio information, shown in FIGS. 30 and 31. In Step S601, the CPU 201in the base unit 2 receives the audio information transmitted by theremote unit 3 in Step S592 and stores the received audio information inthe RAM 209. In Step S602, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 activates anaudio recognition program to analyze the audio information stored in theRAM 209 in Step S601. In Step S603, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2stores the analysis result in Step S602 as an article the user wants tobuy.

In Step S604, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 requests the articleinformation of the article the user wants to buy from theshop-information portal site server 5 through the wireless LANcommunication unit 225. For example, when the user wants to buy ajacket, as described above, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 requests thearticle information of jackets sold in the shop from theshop-information portal site server 5.

The shop-information portal site server 5 performs a process ofproviding the article information shown in FIG. 32. In Step S651, theCPU 301 in the shop-information portal site server 5 receives therequest for the article information, transmitted by the base unit 2 inStep S604, through the communication unit 311. In Step S652, the CPU 301in the shop-information portal site server 5 reads out only the articleinformation of the article the user wants to buy (for example, thearticle information of the jackets) from among the article informationstored in the HDD 304 and transmits the readout article information tothe base unit 2 through the communication unit 311.

Referring back to FIG. 30, in Step S605, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2receives the article information transmitted by the shop-informationportal site server 5 in Step S652 through the wireless LAN communicationunit 225. In Step S606, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 selects anarticle to be recommended to the user based on the result of the audioanalysis in Step S602 and the article information received in Step S605.For example, when the user wants to buy a jacket matched with the pantsthe user previously bought, as described above, the CPU 201 identifiesthe color of the pants the user previously bought based on the shoppinghistory and selects a jacket having a color matched with the color ofthe pants based on the article information. In order to realize suchselection, a table for coordinating colors is stored in advance in theHDD 223.

There is possibly no article the user can select in Step S606.Accordingly, in Step S607, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 determineswhether the article recommended in Step S606 is selected. If therecommended article is selected, the process proceeds to Step S608.

In Step S608, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 transmits the information(for example, the information including the price and thecharacteristics of the article) concerning the article selected in StepS606 to the remote unit 3 through the Bluetooth communication unit 221and requests the remote unit 3 to recommend the article.

The remote unit 3 performs the process of presenting the informationshown in FIG. 24. Since the process in FIG. 24 is described above, theprocess is briefly described. In Step S421, the CPU 151 in the remoteunit 3 receives the information concerning the article and the requestto recommend the article, transmitted by the base unit 2 in Step S608,through the Bluetooth communication unit 126 and stores the receivedinformation and request in the RAM 153. In Step S422, the CPU 151 in theremote unit 3 presents the information concerning the article, receivedin Step S421. A specific method of presenting the information isdescribed above.

Referring back to FIG. 30, if the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 determinesin Step S607 that the article to be recommended to the user is notpresent in Step S606, the process proceeds to Step S609. Since the stepsfrom Step 609 to Step 617 are the same as the steps from Step 331 toS339 in FIG. 20, the description is omitted here.

An article can be recommended to the user based on the audio informationin the manner described above. Although the article is recommended tothe user based on the audio information in the above description, thisdoes not mean that the present invention is limited to therecommendation of the article based on the audio information.

For example, as in a usual personal computer, the user may operate akeyboard or the like to input the request. The user may select a desireditem from a list of menus (for example, “search”, “direction”, and “Iwant to read mails”), which are set in advance and which are displayedin the base unit 2 or the remote unit 3. The preference of the user maybe analyzed based on the number of times the user browses Web pages.Alternatively, the history of the GPS information may be stored in theHDD 223 in the base unit 2 and the preference of the user may beanalyzed based on the place (town or shop) the user frequently visits.

The service providing system of the present invention can present theinformation concerning an area where the user is located to the user.Specifically, for example, when the user gets on a train and gets offthe train at a certain station, the service providing system of thepresent invention can present the information concerning events orbargain sales of articles around the station (in the town) to the user.

Next, a process of presenting the information concerning an area wherethe user is located to the user, that is, the area-information providingprocess will now be described with reference to the flowchart in FIG.33. In Step S701, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 acquires the GPSinformation through the GPS detecting unit 125 and transmits theacquired information to the base unit 2 through the Bluetoothcommunication unit 126.

When the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 receives the GPS informationtransmitted by the remote unit 3 in Step S701 through the Bluetoothcommunication unit 221, in Step S711, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2transmits the GPS information to the positional information serviceserver 7 through the wireless LAN communication unit 225 and requeststhe information concerning the area corresponding to the GPS information(longitude and latitude) (the information concerning an area ishereinafter referred to as area information).

In Step S721, the positional information service server 7 receives theGPS information and the request for the area information correspondingto the GPS information, transmitted by the base unit 2 in Step S711,through the communication unit 411. The positional information serviceserver 7 associates the longitude and latitude with the area informationand stores the associated information in the HDD 404. In Step S722, theCPU 401 in the positional information service server 7 reads out thearea information corresponding to the GPS information, received in StepS721, from the HDD 404 and transmits the readout area information to thebase unit 2 through the communication unit 411.

In Step S712, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 receives the areainformation transmitted by the positional information service server 7in Step S722 through the wireless LAN communication unit 225. In StepS713, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 transmits the received areainformation to the remote unit 3 through the Bluetooth communicationunit 221.

In Step S702, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 receives the areainformation transmitted by the base unit 2 in Step S713 through theBluetooth communication unit 126. In Step S703, the CPU 151 in theremote unit 3 presents the area information to the user. Specifically,for example, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 vibrates the vibrators124-1 and 124-2 and turns on the LED 159 or causes the LED 159 to blinkto attract the user's attention to the remote unit 3. The CPU 151 in theremote unit 3 then displays the area information in the display 101 orcauses the speaker 105 through the audio output controller 158 to outputa guide to the area information.

The user can acquire the useful information concerning an area where theuser visits for the first time owing to the guide to the areainformation.

The service providing system of the present invention can displaydifferent pictures corresponding to different positions in the display101. The display of different pictures will be specifically describedwith reference to FIGS. 34 to 36. As shown in FIG. 34, a user 501 looksat the display 101 (not shown in FIG. 34) of the remote unit 3. Theimaging unit 121 provided at a face opposing the display 101 picks up animage of a landscape within a certain angle. FIG. 35 shows an example ofan image 511 picked up by the imaging unit 121. A predetermined imagethat is synthesized on the image 121 is displayed in the display 101.FIG. 36 shows an example in which a predetermined image that issynthesized on the image 511 in FIG. 35 is displayed in the display 101.

Referring to FIG. 36, a special picture 521 is generated by synthesizingsynthesis images 522-1 to 522-4 on the image 511. Illustrations of arocket, a balloon, and others are synthesized in FIG. 36. Although theillustrations are synthesized in FIG. 36, for example, descriptions(such as the origin of a temple) that are provided in sightseeing spotsor the likes may be synthesized and displayed.

A process of synthesizing a synthesis image on a picked up image anddisplaying the synthesized picture in the display 101, that is, thespecial-picture providing process will now be described with referenceto the flowchart in FIG. 37.

In Step S751, the remote unit 3 accepts an instruction to display aspecial picture, for example, through the operation unit 156. In StepS752, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 acquires the GPS informationthrough the GPS detecting unit 125 to transmit the acquired GPSinformation to the base unit 2 through the Bluetooth communication unit126 and to notify the base unit 2 that the instruction to display thespecial picture is input.

In Step S761, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 receives the GPSinformation and the notification that the instruction to display thespecial picture is input, transmitted by the remote unit 3 in Step S752,through the Bluetooth communication unit 221. In Step S762, the CPU 201in the base unit 2 transmits the GPS information received in Step S761to the positional information service server 7 through the wireless LANcommunication unit 225 and requests a synthesis image corresponding tothe GPS information from the positional information service server V.

In Step S771, the CPU 401 in the positional information service server 7receives the GPS information and the request for a synthesis imagecorresponding to the GPS information, transmitted by the base unit 2 inStep S762. The positional information service server 7 associates thesynthesis image with the GPS information and stores the associated imagein the HDD 404. In Step S772, the CPU 401 in the positional informationservice server 7 reads out the synthesis image corresponding to the GPSinformation, received in Step S771, from the HDD 404 and transmits thereadout synthesis image to the base unit 2 through the communicationunit 411.

In Step S763, the CPU 201 in the base unit 2 receives the synthesisimage transmitted by the positional information service server 7 in StepS772 through the wireless LAN communication unit 225. In Step S764, theCPU 201 in the base unit 2 transmits the synthesis image to the remoteunit 3 through the Bluetooth communication unit 221.

In Step S753, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 receives the synthesisimage transmitted by the base unit 2 in Step S764 through the Bluetoothcommunication unit 221 and stores the received synthesis image in theRAM 153. In Step S754, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 synthesizes thesynthesis image stored in the RAM 153 in Step S753 on the picture(moving image or still image) picked up by the imaging unit 121 anddisplays the picture in the display 101.

The special-picture providing process is performed in the mannerdescribed above. Performing the special-picture providing process canimprove the level of entertainment.

In Step S752, the CPU 151 in the remote unit 3 may transmit the imagepicked up by the imaging unit 121 to the base unit 2, in addition to theGPS information and the notification that the instruction to display thespecial picture is input, and may store the synthesis image in the RAM153 along with image transmitted here.

As described above, according to the present invention, the user whocarries the remote unit 3 having the sensors and the base unit 2selecting information to be presented to the user can automaticallyperform the sensing in the base unit 2 and the remote unit 3, can detectthe situation (problem) of the user, and can perform the problemsolving, without operating the keyboard and/or mouse of a personalcomputer, unlike conventional cases.

Selecting information to be presented to the user in the base unit 2 canreduce the management cost in the server, compared with a case in whichthe server selects information to be presented to the user, and also caneliminate the time lag due to the communication with the server.

When the server selects information to be presented to the user as inconventional cases, it is necessary for all the relevant servers toproperly operate. In contrast, according to the present invention, sincethe need for the server that selects information to be presented to theuser is eliminated, the useful information can be stably provided to theuser, independent of the operation state of the server.

The series of processes may be performed by hardware or by software.When the series of processes are performed by the software, the programsin the software are installed in a computer incorporated in dedicatedhardware or in, for example, a general-purpose personal computer capableof performing various functions by installing various programs, over anetwork or from a recording media.

As shown in FIG. 7 and FIGS. 9 to 12, the recording media includes notonly package media including the magnetic disk 241 (including a flexibledisk), 321, 371, and 421; the optical disk 242 (including a compact diskread only memory (CD-ROM) and a digital versatile disk (DVD)), 322, 372,and 422; the magneto-optical disk 243 (including a minidisc (MD)), 323,373, and 423; or semiconductor memory 244, 324, 374, and 424, which hasthe programs recorded therein and which is distributed for providing theprograms to the user, independent of the main unit, but also the ROM152, 302, 352, and the 402; the storage unit 154; and the HDD 223, 304,354, and 404, which have the programs recorded therein and which areprovided to the user in a state incorporated in the main unit.

In this description, the steps describing the programs recorded on therecording medium may be performed in the described order in time seriesor may be performed in parallel or individually.

In this description, a system represents the overall system including aplurality of apparatuses.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

As described above, according to a first aspect of the presentinvention, useful information can be provided to a user.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, it is possibleto reduce leakage of private information of the user.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, informationsuited to the situation of the user can be presented to the user.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, it is possibleto reduce leakage of private information of the user.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, information suitedto the situation of the user can be selected.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, it is possibleto reduce leakage of private information of the user.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, it is possible toselect presentation information that is presented to the user by anotherinformation processing apparatus.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, it is possibleto reduce leakage of private information of the user.

1. An information processing apparatus which a user carries along withanother first information processing apparatus, the informationprocessing apparatus comprising: a GPS sensor included in the firstinformation processing apparatus; first communication means forreceiving user information including present location information, whichis information concerning the user, from the first informationprocessing apparatus; second communication means for receivingaccumulated information accumulated in another second informationprocessing apparatus from the second information processing apparatus;and selecting means for selecting, based on the user information,presentation information, which is information to be presented to theuser, from the accumulated information, wherein, the first communicationmeans transmits the presentation information selected by the selectingmeans to the first information processing apparatus, the informationprocessing apparatus receives a part of the accumulated informationprocessing apparatus based on the location information, the accumulatedinformation includes information of articles sold in a shop, theselecting means selects, based on the user information from the firstinformation processing apparatus, information from the part of theaccumulated information, and the first communication means transmits theselected information to the first information processing apparatus. 2.The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein theuser information includes information concerning the longitude andlatitude of a location of the user.
 3. The information processingapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the user information includesaudio information spoken by the user, acquired by the first informationprocessing apparatus, and wherein the information processing apparatusfurther comprises: analyzing means for analyzing the audio information.4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, whereinthe selecting means selects the presentation information to be presentedto the user from the accumulated information based on the analysisresult in the analyzing means.
 5. The information processing apparatusaccording to claim 1, further comprising: determining means fordetermining whether the user is present in the shop, wherein theselecting means selects the article expected to be desired by the userfrom the articles sold in the shop in which the user is present,determined by the determining means.
 6. The information processingapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first communication meansperforms communication with the other first information processingapparatus, the communication complying with bluetooth protocol.
 7. Theinformation processing apparatus according to claim 1, furthercomprising: storage means for storing the user information received bythe first communication means and the accumulated information receivedby the second communication means.
 8. An information processing methodused in an information processing apparatus which a user carries alongwith another first information processing apparatus including a GPSsensor, the information processing method comprising: receiving, at theinformation processing apparatus, user information including presentlocation information, which is information concerning the user, from thefirst information processing apparatus; receiving, at the informationprocessing apparatus, accumulated information accumulated in anothersecond information processing apparatus from the second informationprocessing apparatus, a part of the accumulated information receivedfrom the second information processing apparatus based on the locationinformation; selecting, based on the user information, presentationinformation, which is information to be presented to the user, from thepart of the accumulated information based on the user information fromthe first information processing apparatus; and transmitting, from theinformation processing apparatus, the presentation information selectedin the selecting the presentation information to the first informationprocessing apparatus, wherein, the receiving accumulated informationincludes receiving information of articles sold in a shop, and theselecting presentation information includes selecting, based on the userinformation, article information associated with an article expected tobe desired by the user from the information of articles sold in theshop, the article information of the selected article being transmittedto the first information processing apparatus.
 9. A computer-readablenon-transitory storage medium having embedded therein instructions,which when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform amethod comprising: receiving, at the information processing apparatus,user information including present location information, which isinformation concerning the user, from the first information processingapparatus; receiving, at the information processing apparatus,accumulated information accumulated in another second informationprocessing apparatus from the second information processing apparatus, apart of the accumulated information received from the second informationprocessing apparatus based on the location information; selecting, basedon the user information, presentation information, which is informationto be presented to the user, from the part of the accumulatedinformation based on the user information from the first informationprocessing apparatus; and transmitting, from the information processingapparatus, the presentation information selected in the selecting thepresentation information to the first information processing apparatus,wherein, the receiving accumulated information includes receivinginformation of articles sold in a shop, and the selecting presentationinformation includes selecting, based on the user information, theselecting presentation information includes selecting, based on the userinformation, article information associated with an article expected tobe desired by the user from the information of articles sold in theshop, the article information of the selected article being transmittedto the first information processing apparatus.